America's Best

I don't usually don't make it to the field much anymore, which is nice since I'm old. But today I got to go to the demo range with the local Police bomb squad and the Army EOD unit. We were observing some training and kind of acting as range safety observers. It was a great time, of course whenever you blow something up it's a great time and blowing cars up is the greatest. Hanging out with the EOD guys and listening to stories of Iraq was the best thing to come out of today though. When I was in our biggest worry was Desert Storm and we all know how that went. I went scuba diving while I was over there. Of course the Army and Marines had it a little rougher, but not much.

These guys are like my friends and I were, cocky, profane, raunchy and brave but they've faced more than I ever did or will. One Staff Sergeant I talked to had been to Iraq two times and wanted to go back a third because he didn't like the staff weenies and bureaucracy at the base. None of these guys was wallowing in self pity or guilt and judging by the laughter and teasing going on, none suffered from post traumatic stress either. They go about their jobs with a sense of humor and an scary amount of knowledge, skill and proficiency for young kids in their twenties. Of course a lot of them were talking about the desire to get out of the Army. You can't blame them, they're brave not stupid. Spending the afternoon with them was really a pleasure and honor.

If the afternoon had one drawback it was that it made me wish I was twenty years younger and seventy pounds lighter again and just starting on the great job I've had for the past 23 years.